Top access refrigerator and cover therefor



Oct. 21, 1952 B. ROBERTS 2,614,491

, TOP ACCESS REFRIGERATOR AND COVER THEREFOR Filed July 25, 1949 3Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. BERNARD FOB/SETS.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oct. 21, 1952 B. ROBERTS TOP ACCESS REFRIGERATOR ANDCOVER THEREFOR Filed July 25, 1949 INVENTOR. BERNQ/QD 19065? T5 BY MW MOct. 21, 1952 B. ROBERTS 2,614,401

TOP ACCESS REFRIGERATOR AND COVER THEREFOR Filed July 23, 1949 :5Sheeis-Sneet s BEEN!) ED 5056575 222% 2 W01 My ofFig. 4.

Patented Oct. 21, 1952 UNITED 'STATES PATENT OFFICE 'ror AcoEss.REFRIGERATOR AND COVER THEREFOR Bernard Roberts, Bronx, N. 1.Application July 23, 1949, Serial NoL106A69 7 I This inventionrelates'to a sink and food-freezing storage unit, and is particularlyadapted for use in a kitchen where the available cabinet space islimited.

One object of this invention is a sink and foodfreezing storage unitwhich emyploys the kitchen space to maximum advantage.

Another object is a sink and food-freezing storage unit which is compactand which variously utilizes a movable cover member in closed positionas a drain board for the sink and as the closure member of thefood-freezing compartment, and in open position as a sink cover andreception platform.

Another object isa sink and food-freezing stor- I age unit whichutilizesthe space occupied by the freezer compartment, by the-sink, and the deadspace beneath the sink, to maximum advantage.

Another object is a compact sink and foodfreezing storage unit suitablefor use as one unit of a. built-in lineup of base or counter-topped,kitchen cabinets.

Another object is a sink and food-freezingstorage unit of but few andsimple parts, which is compact, inexpensive to manufacture, readilyassembled and installed, easy to maintain, and which is very eificientand durable in use.

Other objects will appear from the detailed description which follows:

In the drawingscomprising three sheets of five figures, numbered Figs. 1to inclusive, one suggested embodiment of the invention is illustratedby way of example only.

Fig. l is a general perspective, view ofa sink and food-freezing storageunit;

9 Claims. (01. 62-116 the handy sink 22 and the large utility sink 23.An apron or back splash board 24 serves to protect the wall above thecounter from soilage;

The food storage well 2| is enclosed upon all sides except the-top, bywalls of metal or other conductive material, including the conductivefront wall 25a (Fig. 5), the conductive back wall 26, the conductive endwalls 21 and 28, and the conductive bottom 29 (Fig.2).

The food storage well 2| and the sink(s) 22 and/or 23, are positioned inand supported by an outer supporting case 30 consisting of the front andrear supporting walls 3| and 32 (Figs. 1 and 2), the end supportingwalls 33 and 34, the partition wall '35, and a bottom wall or base 36(Fig. 2) The partition wall 'cross-braces the outer case 30 andsubdivides it into two distinctive compartments, one for housing thefood storage well 2|, and the otherfor containing the'sink(s). Outercase 30 may be supported upon a common base or pedestal 31, fashionedout of sections of channel iron or steel suitably welded or otherwisesecured together, to form a pedestal frame. i v

The overall dimensions of the food storage well 2| are substantially,less than the inside dimensions of the well-housing compartment formedin the outer case 30, so that when the food stor- Fig. 2 is a verticalsectional view taken along y the line 22 of Fig. 1 looking in thedirection ofjthe arrows;

. Fig. 3 is a'vertical cross sectional view of afragment of thedeep-freeze compartment, taken along the line 33 of Fig. 2, looking inthe direction of the arrows;

, Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a modified form ofcover member; and

Fig. 5 is a vertical cross sectional View of a fragment of adeep-freezing compartment, combinedlwith the modified q Like referencecharacters designate correspondin parts throughout the several figuresof the drawings.

The base cabinet 20 (Fig. 1) which is of counter height, is preferablysubdivided into two compartments so as to accommodate a storage well,2

for frozen food, and one or more sinks, such as form of cover memberdeep-freezing in the food storage well 2|.

. Theconductive front, back, and end walls 25, 26, 21, and 28 of'thefrozen-food storage well 2| are separated from the corresponding front,rear, and end supporting walls 3|, 32, and 33 of the outer supportingcase 30 and from partition wall 35, by means of a circuit breaker 10composed of a strip of any suitable nonconductive, waterproof materialsuch as Formica, Bakelite, Plexiglas, etc. The strip .10 may be eitherbuttjointed (Fig. 2), or form an overlapping joint, between each of theconductivewalls of the well 2| and the corresponding supporting orpartition wall, of the outer case 30.

The food storage well 2| may be fabricated either from refrigeratorplates, or in any other form embodying the principle of the refrigeratorplatetype of construction, or a length of metal tubing may be wound'inthe form of a refrigerat- 3 ing coil 40 to enclose the conductive sidewalls and the conductive bottom wall 29 of the food storage well 2 Therefrigerating coil 40 preferably abuts the conductive side walls and theconductive bottom, and extends around said walls and along said bottomin physical contact therewith, so as to cool or chill all parts of theconductive walls and of the conductive bottom of food storage .well 2|rapidly and uniformly, thus tending'to maintain all parts of thefood'storage well 2| at a substantially uniform low temperature, whichduring the normal operation of the deep-freezing unit, will be;substantially below 7 freezing point.

The food storage well 2| is provided with an insulated waterproofclosure 4|, containing insulat-' ing material 49 of high thermalresistance, the closure preferably being so designed that it may slidealong the top of thesupporting case 30, from closed to open, position.The waterproof insulated closure 4| may bestructurallyreinforced bybeing encased between laminations of metalfashioned to form a drainboard which may be provided with a series of corrugations 42 extendinglengthwise of said drain bOard fOr draining-any moisture collectin uponthe drain board into the sink-22.

The drain board may be made of any suitable material such as steel,coated'with porcelain or the like, having its peripheral marginal edgebent 'to form the'idownwardly depending flange 55. A coverlinin'g 46',which likewise may be porcelain coated steeL'is upwardly bent around itsperipheral marginal edge to form. the upstanding flange 54 whose freemarginal edge is sealed by the over- "lying fiange 55 01? the drainboard. The space between the; drain board and the cover lining 46,deflnes a chamber of" considerable depth for containinga s'ufiici'entthickness of insulatin mate- ;r1a1 '49- to effect high thermalresistance. and flan'ge '55 co-operates with upstanding flange 54 ofcover'lining 46 to seal the insulating material 49 in the drain boardchamber and form a rugged cover construction. The counter-top issuitably "recessed above the well and sink openings to form -a; pair ofoppositely disposed spaced parallel guide-channels 45 (Fig. 2), whichextend lengthwiseof the cabinet and overlie the well 2| and the sink(s)22 and/ or 23. The front and rear sup- 'porting walls 3| and 32 may bebent to form the guide-channels 45 wherein drain board 4| is 'mounted toslide fromthe closed position shown in'bold lines in Fig. 2,'to the openposition substantially asshown in broken lines in said figure.

To insure an effective seal between drain board '4 I 'and'the wall ofthe well 2|, the trailing edge of cover lining 46 (Fig. 3) is bent toform a step 50,

and the outer edge or lip 5| of step 50 is suitably secured, as bywelding, to the meeting edge of *drain board 4|. Cover lining 46 anddrain board 4|' may be formed out of one sheet of metal bent into theform shown in the drawings.

The upper marginal edge of the wall of well 2|,

disposed'above the circuit breaker 10, may be bent "to form anupstanding lip 52, and reversely bent 'tolforma downwardly dependingflange for overlapping and sealingthe lip of the sink 22 (Fig.

3) ,as' well as to form a stop for the step 50. The

lateral flange of the sink22 forms a seat for the bottom of the steppededge of the drain board 4|.

A gasket 53 of suitablefresili'entinsulating mateshock absorber when thedrain board 4| slides into position to properly close the food storagewell 2|. The leading edge of cover lining 46 is also bent upwardly toform an upstanding flange 54 (Fig. 3) which is sealed by the downwardlyextending overlapping flange 55. To effect a better seal between theleading edge of the closure 4| and the end wall of the food storagewell2| the upper edge of the end supportingwall 33 is bent over to form thelaterally protruding'flange 56, which overlaps the leading marginal edgeof the drain board when closure 4| is fully closed. A

gasket 51' OLE Suitable-elastic and insulating material: such as rubber,is suitably secured to the leading edge of closure 4|, as to theupstanding flange-54 of the drain board, to increase the sealinsactiomand act as a shock absorber as the closure 4| slides into closingposition above food storage well 2 Any suitable means may be used forsliding the closure 4|= intheguidechannels .45... Ahandle 58 formed bysuitably-bending :a rod of rust-proof metal such. as stainless steeLor.anickel or chrome plated metal rod, gives good results.

One or more sinks, such as the handy sink 22 and the large utility sink23, are mounted'upon the outer supporting case 30, between thepartition-wall 35 and the end supporting wall 34, so as notrto. obstructor interfere with the guide channelsv 45, so'athat when the drain boardis moved towardsthe ddtted line positionshown; in Fig. 2, the. .drainboard will overlie the sink.(s) 22 and/or '23I'and thus be convertedinto a sink cover and a shelf or platform forxtemporarilyacicommodatingfoodstuffs in their passage .to. an from the. food storage-well: 2|

The sink(s-.).. 2 2 and/or .23 are. provided. with the usual wasteoutlets. 53', Hirer-plumbing connections to the drain pipe line.

The. sink (s). 22 and/or 23. occupy the upper nor.- tioniof onehalf-section off the cabinetzspace. In the lower portion of the samehalf-"esectionofsthe cabinet. andnbeneath the sink(s) 22 and/or 23,. thecompressor unit for the deep-.freeze'unit, is installed. This.compressor unit includes the usual electric. motor 53 for driving thefan 6.0 of the condenser 6|, andithe compressor 62-. A section of pipe(not shown). detachably couples one end of the metal tubing of therefrigerating coils 4.0 to the high pressure pipe. 65, and anothersection of pipe (notshown) detachably couples the opposite end of themetal tubing ofthe'refrigerating coils 40 to the low pressure returnpipe. 66, of the compressor unit. A suitable thermostatic control systemandthe apparatus therefor (not shown) but which is well known in theart, is provided, for maintaining an accurate temperature control of thefood storage well 2 The top of the sink, or the back splash 24', may beprovided with suitable openings for mounting a combination faucet: 61.The combination faucet 61 includes the usual hot and cold water controlvalves suitably piped to the hot and cold water lines (not shown) of theconventional house water supply system.

When the drain board 4| is in the bold line 1 position of Fig. 2, thewell 2| is eifectively sealed,

and the sink(s) 22 and/or 23 may be used for domestic purposes in theconventional way, and

washed articles may be placed upon the drain board 4| to drain, anydrainage flowingalong the to theiood storage well 2 l, is required, thedrain board is moved along the guide channels 45 to a'positionsubstantially asshown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, and articles of foodmay now be transferred from the food storage well Zl to the drain boardor vice versa, thus using the drainage board 4!, as a temporary shelf orloading platformto conserve space, when storing food. in, or removing itfrom, the food storage well 2 I. ljBy locatirigthe compressor systemunit beneathj'thefsinmsl, the deep-freezing portion of the unit iseffectively used to maximum capacity, and at maximum efiiciency as afood storage well, and the space beneath the sink(s) is also usedeffectively and isn'otwasted, Moreover the compressor unit is in aposition where access thereto for frepairs or for replacement thereofcan be rea'dily obtained without in any way disturbing the 'food storagefunction of, or the food stored in; the 'well'gl. By this arrangementthe low temperaturejofi'thefood storage well at can be preserved ,gior asubstantial period of time, to permit the repair or replacement of, thecomsres'sq j t, 5

Accessftojthe compressor unit is obtained either by a ,door orbyaremovable panel "68, which is provided with a series of ventilatingslots 69 for maintaining an effective circulation of air to the compressor'unitf I ,l iigs; 4 and 5 show a modified drain boardconstruction, wherein the drain board and cover 4m, corrugated 'at42a,is provided with a'rnarginal edgewhichis bent and reversely bent to formthe upstanding peripheral flange or lip 430 and the ownwardl extendingperipheral flange 44a, which overlies and effectively seals theoppositely disposed spaced upstanding flanges Ma and 48a of thecoverli-iiing 46a. The upstanding flange 43a and the downwardlyextending flange 44a in conjunction form a channel in which theupstanding flanges lla and 48a. may register and be effectively sealed.The drain board and cover 41a; an'd'the'cover lining @l5a, 'may beformed by suitably bending a single metal sheet,.or it may 'be'fab'rica'ted'out of two separate metal sheets welded or otherwisesecuredtogether at am. Thecoverlining 46a is stepped at 563m and agasket 5'3djof a suitable elastic and heat insulating material such asrubber, is secured in the angle formed'b'y the step 52o;

tive ly' sealed between and protected by the metal cover Ma and itslining 46a.' An operating handle 58a is suitably welded or otherwiseanchored to the drain board 41a.

only so much fof the deep-freeze cabinet is 'shown'in Figf5-asisnecessary to an understandingot the operation of the modified formofcover 'wallssZEafEfiaj and 21a thereof, and the walls 'of 'the'outersupporting case, including the front and -re'ar 'supporting walls'3ld'and 32a thereof, filled with suitable heat insulating material 39(15-'Th'e refrigerating e011 1 And is in. physical a A substantial thicknessof'heat'insulatingmaterial 49a is' effec- 6 breaker Illa thermallyinsulates the supporting walls from the upper ends of the conductivewalls ofwell 2 I, and the front and rea'r supporting walls are suitablystepped to define 'a pair of op-' positely disposed spaced parallelguide-channels 45a45a wherein the cover member (Fig.4) is slidablysupported (Fig. 5). l 1 The use of laminations of 'metal'for protectingthe insulating material 4| may be dispensed with, provided theinsulating material 49 is waterproof andstiff enough to beself-supporting. I w

The cover 4| may be subdividedinto two halfsections mounted to slide oneabov'ethe other, or said cover may be hingedlymounte'd upon thepartition wall to swing to the left to seal the well or to the right tocover the sink. i

As illustrated in the drawings a right hand cabinet is shown, but itshould be understood'that the invention is equally applicable to aleft'hand cabinet, in which case the sink(s) 22 and/or 23 would bepositioned at the left end of the freeze-- sinkunit, or upon theopposite side of the frozenfood storage well 2| from that shown in Figs.1

and 2. 7

Other modifications of the invention within the scope of the claimshereof, will be obviousto those skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:

' 1." In a cabinet of counter-height and in coinbination, an outer casesubstantially 'c'ounterhigh, said case being open at the top, apartition wall positioned within said case and extend ing from the frontwall to the back wall thereof to subdivide said case into two adjoiningcompartments, said partition wall forming a wall common to bothcompartments,a deep-freezing food storage well positioned in one of saidcom-- partments, said well beingo'pen at the top and having side and endWalls and a' bottom wall otherwise completely enclosing saidfood-storage well, of lesser dimensions than said compartment therebyforming achamber between the side, end and bottom walls ofv saidwell andthe sidewalls, end wall partition wall and bottom wall of saidcompartment, heat insulating material packed in said chamber to opposepassage of heat from said side, end, bottom and parti tion walls to thewalls of said well, a sink positioned in said other compartment, thetopedges or the side and I end Walls of said well and the mating edgesof the corresponding :walls of said out-ercase'being spaoedly separatedfrom each other to define a gap, a strip of material of high thermalresistance positioned in and preventing conductionofheat across saidgap, the top edges of said Welland of said sink being disposed onsubstantially the same level, the walls of said cabinet, well, and sink,in conjunction, co-operating to define a spaced pair of oppositelydisposed parallel guide-channels extending lengthi wise of said cabinetand overlying said well and a said sink, ahollow drain board defining acovere fitacuwan the conductive walls (and bottom not shown; of the foodstorage Well. A circuitmember, the cavity in said cover-member beingpacked with heat insulating material to oppose passage ofheattherethrough, said cover-memher being slidablyj movableinsaidguide-channels to alternativelyoverlie either the mouth of thewellorthe sink openingand said covere member in one position thermallysealing. the mouthof said well and defining a counter-top draining into.said sink and in the other position forming. a sink-cover andloading-platform..for food to be stored in'th'e well. I

l 2'. In a cabinet of counter-height and in combination, an outer casesubstantially countertion': wall from. the adjoining; compartment, ,heatinsulating material packed in said chamber :for insulating. said Well,the counter overlying said otherh'cco'mpartment ahaving. a. sink openingformedthereimlthe top edges of said well and of; said sinkiopening,being disposed on substantiallyv the'isame level; a acovemrnember comprse ing 'heatinsulating material, said cover-member being ,mounted; to;mo've,g to alternative; positions, saidcoverj-member in one of saidpositionsoverlyingtthewell to thermally'seal the mouth thereof;and-towform a counteretopdraining into the sink opening, and in theotherqof saidpositions overlying and covering the sink opening andforming a loading-platform for the well.

6. In a cabinet of counter-heightand in combination, a counter-toppedouter-case, a partition wall subdividing said case into, two adjoiningcompartments,a food storage well positioned in one of said compartmentsand accessible through the counter-top, the side, end and bottom wallsofsaid well :beinglmade of heatconductive material, said well-being oflesser diinen'sions than said compartment so that when said well. ispositioned in said, compartment a chamber is formed between themdefinedbyand confined within their respective walls, the top edges ofthe side and end walls of said well and the mating edges of thecorresponding walls of said outer case terminating in oppositely spacedrelation to each other to form a gap therebetween, a band of material ofhigh thermal resistance positioned in and preventing conduction of heatacross said gap, means operable to reduce the temperature of said wellsubstantially below freezing point, said temperature reducing meansbeing accessible through the partition wall and controllable from theadjoining compartment, heat insulating material packed in said chamberfor insulating said well, a sink opening formed in the counter-topoverlying the adjoining compartment, the top edges of said well and ofsaid sink opening being disposed on substan-' tially the same level, acover-member comprising heat insulating material, said cover-memberbeing mounted to move to alternative positions in said counter-top, saidcover-member in one of said positions overlying the Well to thermallyseal the mouth thereof and to drain said countertop towards the sinkopening, and said covermember in said other position overlying andcovering the sink opening to convert the countertop into aloading-platform fo the well.

'7. In a cabinet of counter-height and in combination, an outer case,the top of said case being open, said opening being substantiallycounter-high, a partition wall extending from the front wall to the backwall of saidcase to subdivide it into two adjoining compartments, a

food storage well positioned in one of said compartments and accessiblethrough said countertop opening, the walls of said well being metallic,

said well being of lesser dimensions than said compartment so that whensaid well is positioned gap, a length of metal tubing wrapped aroundsaid well and extending across the bottom thereof: tci rm ar fr ge aton. qiLthe o pos t -ends of said re r g a n coil extendin -throu h a dpartition wall and opening into the .adjoining chamber; heat insulating7 material positioned be tween said refrigerationcoil and theouter Wallfx a di am e o u stantia l ase t e thermal resistance of said chamber, asink pq-, sitioned in said other compartment, a com-- pressor positionedbeneath said sink, pipe con; nections extending between the ends of saidrefrigeration coil and said compressor to complete a closedrefrigeration system, the top edges of said well and of said sink beingsubstantially level, a spaced pearv of oppositely disposed parallelguide-channels extending lengthwise of said cabinet and overlying saidwell and said sink, a hollow cover-member, thecavity in said covermemberbeing packed with heat insulating material to increase the thermalresistance of said cover-member, said cover -member being slidablymovable in said guide-channelsto alternatively overlie eitherthemouthofthe well or the sink opening, and said cover-member, in oneposition thermally ealing the mouthof said well and defining a drainboard draining into said sink and in theother position forming a sink-r,cover and a loading-platform for the well.

8. In a counter-cabinet and in combination, an outer case substantiallycounter-high, said case being open at the top, a partition wallsubdividing said case from front to back into two adjoiningcompartments, a food storage well positioned in one of said compartmentsand accessible through the open top thereof, the walls of said wellbeing metallic, said well being of lesser dimensions than saidcompartment so that when said well is positioned in said compartment achamber is formed extending from the walls of the well to the walls ofthe compartment, the top edges of the side and end walls of said welland the mating edges of the corresponding walls of said outer caseterminating in oppositely spaced relation to each other to form a gaptherebetween, a band of material of high thermal resistance positionedin and preventing conduction of heat across said gap, means positionedin said chamber operable to reduce the temperature of said wellsubstantially below freezing point, said temperature reducing meansbeing accessible through said partition wall from the adjoining chamber,heat insulating material extending between said temperature reducingmeans and the outer wall of said chamber to substantially increase thethermal resistance of said chamber, a sink positioned in said othercompartment, a compressor positioned beneath said sink, pipe connectionsextending between the ends of said temperature reducing means and said'compressor to provide a closed refrigeration system, the top edges'ofsaid well and of said sink being substantially level, a hollowcover-member, the cavity in said cover-member being packed with heatinsulating material to increase the thermal resistance of saidcover-member, said covermember being mounted to move to alternativelyoverlie either the mouth of the well or the sink opening, and saidcover-member in one position thermally sealing the mouth of said Welland defining a drain board draining into said sink and in the otherposition forming a sink-cover and a loading-platform for the well.

9. In a counter-cabinet and in combination, an outer case substantiallycounter-high, said case being open at the top, a partition wallsubdividing said case from front to back into ad- 111.v jblrflngbemfiarfimefits, a food stei age wll -positlened in ene 01 said.compartments and accessible through the top thereof; the walls of saidwen being meta11i'c,-saiid well *being of lesser dimensiens than saidcompartment "so that when said well is positioned in said compartment achamber is formed extending from' the Walls of the well to the "walls ofthe'compaltment, the top edges of the side and endwalls 'of said welland the mating edges 0f -'the corresponding walls of said miter easetermihaiting in oppositely spaced felaifii'on be each other t0 f'ormmgap therbetween-,- a band of material df high thermal resista'iice peslti dned in and 'preveh'ting eenduction o! he'ait *a'cross said gap, *a.length49f metal tubing wrapped -'around said well and extendm'g aerossthe-bottbm thereof to form a refrigeration-bell, the epen -e'n'ds 'o'fsaid tubfllar coll, ex'tending threugh said partition wallldnto theadjoining chamber, heat insulating maiteri al eovesingsaid refrigeration"coil andfilling said chamber-to substaiiitiial-ly lnc'rease 'thethermal resistance-thereof, the opening in the outer 'c'ase abovesaiddfljfel"bmi)aflimbnt definin'g "an opening for a sink, a compressorpositioned beneath said si 'nkopening pipes connecting she ends of saidmm- 1 2 l'a'r 'coil with sal'd 'eompr'essor to provide amusedretri'g'eratio'n system, the -cop.elge'sso'f said fwell and of-saldsink-opening being substantially level, 'a. hollow cover-member,theicavitylnlsaiid cover-member being packed with heat insulatin'gmaterial, said hover-member being movable to alternatively overlieeither the mouth of'iihe well (ll-the sink-opening, and saidcover-member in 'o'ne p'ositi'on thermally sealing the m'outh of saidwell and defining a, drain board draining into said 'sinkopening and inthe 'o'ther position covering the sinkQop'ening to form s.loadingplatform fbrth'ewell.

1 V "BERNARD'ROBER LS;

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